Today Danita and I buried one of our best friends.
Sancho, our family member, fur-kid, travel companion and all-round lovely chap has finally arrived at the end of his road in this life.
Fifteen years ago, when he was one, he joined our family.
He was born on 1st November 2001 and was a Maltese/Lhasa Apso cross.
The Lhasa Apso is a Tibetan dog bred as a companion dog for monks.
We believe that gave him his placid and very Zen nature – he was happy anywhere and with anyone.
Choosing his name
When we got him, he was a rescue dog called O-Bowie.
We have no idea where that name came from, but he wasn’t going to live with us with a name like that.
Here’s a photo of what he looked like when we first saw him on the web and what he looked like when we picked him up.
Once we picked him up we were trying to choose a name.
While stopped in traffic outside the Man of La Mancha restaurant (we were in Sydney – of course we were stopped in traffic) I suggested Sancho, Don Quixote’s trusty and loyal sidekick. It felt like a good name for a dog.
On hearing the name Sancho, he looked up and seemed to respond and so it stuck.
And he has been a wonderful proponent of those values.
Travelling
Over his time with us he travelled extensively including three trips to and from Perth (that’s WA as there’s one not that far from here in Tasmania as well) and of course, to his final home in Devonport.
Starting in our house in North Ryde, he was with us through five years of house-sitting.
During that time he got on well with small dogs, big dogs, cats, chickens, ducks, horses and more.
As you can see he had no trouble sharing.
He was even willing to participate in what some would consider silly and humiliating dress-ups.
At one point he even took over writing my blog post (click here for A Doggie Perspective).
So, having been part of our family for so long, it was very sad today when he left us.
The end
Yesterday he had some twitching in the morning which looked a bit odd but we thought was one of his doggie dreams – he had lots of those and clearly enjoyed chasing something or someone in them.
Later he came for a walk with me and seemed his usual self.
At 12 noon, all that changed.
He started spasming and frothing at the mouth.
Danita had gone out and had left her phone at home (of all the times…) so I went to a neighbour for assistance.
Eventually we found a vet (it was after normal business hours) who put him on some drugs to help calm him and he advised me to monitor the situation.
Through the afternoon it got worse and the drugs seemed to have no effect.
In the evening we went back to the vet who gave us much stronger drugs.
They had no effect either and things only seemed to be deteriorating.
We found an emergency vet hospital a few towns away and arranged to bring him in.
The drive was a terrible experience with him in my lap, twitching and howling.
As soon as we got there he was heavily sedated and put on a drip for the night.
Next morning the vet called and told us the spasming and howling (she called it “vocalising”) was continuing and so the decision was made that it was time to say goodbye.
Thankfully that was a quiet and peaceful process.
The vet warned us that once the heart stops it’s common for the animal to open its eyes, move and have toilet motions. This is due to the body “unwinding”.
Even if death Sancho was calm and peaceful with none of these things happening.
We’re grateful for that.
The funeral
We took him home and have buried him in the front yard.
I have been working on an area, turning it into a mini orchard.
So far we have an olive tree and an avocado tree which have both been gifts from friends.
At the moment we’re nurturing the avocado and so it hasn’t been planted yet but the olive is in.
Sancho has now been buried there with a rosemary bush at his head.
As you can see, he’s a bit of a feature at the moment, but I expect the mound will settle in time.
We went out briefly this afternoon to return a crowbar I had borrowed to dig the grave.
On our return someone had placed a bunch of flowers on it which was lovely.
A true friend
A friend of mine told me when he lost his dog, that the dog had been his best friend.
While I “understood” what he meant, I hadn’t really “got” it.
Today I did.
Sancho was always happy to see us.
While he couldn’t actually speak our language, he was an excellent communicator, letting us know when he wanted to eat, go for a walk, go to bed (or rather join us in ours) and more.
He often knew when we were having a difficult time and would cuddle up to us.
He was fun and funny to have around and we will miss him terribly.
Harry, the above-mentioned friend, told me that after eight years he still misses coming home to his little mate.
I don’t know about eight years, but I know we will miss him terribly for a long time.
On his grave we put a little sign which says “One spoilt dog lives here”.
In Jewish tradition a righteous person is said to be alive even when they are dead, while a wicked person is said to be dead event when they are alive.
While it may seem strange to have that sign on his grave, I know he will be alive in us for a long time.
Good-bye little buddy – we love you.